Kelly Ripa’s Favorite Things

Kelly Ripa is chewing gum when we meet during an Electrolux Text-A-Thon event to benefit OCRF.

“I had garlic last night, and I feel like I’m killing people,” the jovial Regis & Kelly host tells me. “I don’t want to spit it out — just in case.”

When the busy mom of three, 38, isn’t doing laundry – her favorite chore – or running around from job-to-job, she can be found indulging in her favorite things. She opens up about her passions.

Favorite movie?
“Jaws. I love Jaws. It makes me think of the beach. I grew up at the Jersey Shore, but now we go to the Hamptons – it just has that feel, that look to it. I love the terror of not knowing what’s out there under the water. I love Shark Week on Discovery Channel for that same reason.”

Favorite concert?
“Madonna’s Sticky and Sweet for sure. It’s energy, action-packed, great costumes, great choreography. Her body is sick. She’s just great.”
Favorite snack?
“Ooh! My favorite snack these days are Think Thin peanut butter protein bars. Some of my producers gave them to me. They’re like chocolate-covered peanut butter. They’re delicious. I don’t know how many calories are in them; I don’t know how many grams of fat; I don’t know anything about them. They are delicious. Love them.”

Favorite cocktail?
“Right now, I like something called a champagne mojito. It’s very good. I don’t really have cocktails that often, but that seems like a nice one.”

Beauty product you can’t live without?
“Oscar Blandi’s Hair Sunscreen. It’s called Capri, and it’s sunscreen for people like me, who color their hair. Sometimes if you go into the sun, your hair can turn white all of a sudden. It protects your hair from that.”

Another thing Kelly cares deeply about is fighting ovarian cancer.

“I have had a couple very close friends of mine die from ovarian cancer, who didn’t know they had it until it was totally untreatable,” she says. “There are a lot of people who want to help, but they don’t know how to help, they don’t know what to do to help. But you can text my name to the number 85944, and donate $5. Anybody can do it. You don’t have to be rich to do it; you don’t have to think about it to do it. You can do it while you’re in the elevator on the way to work; you can do it while you’re at the park with your kids. It’s easy – no fuss, no muss.”

I see Kelly all the time. Here’s a pic.

Pick up the OK! on newsstands now for a Culture Vulture from Kelly. The cover line is Jennifer Aniston/“Pregnant At 40!” And, donate $5 to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund by texting “Kelly” to 85944, or visit kelly-confidential.com.